Tech companies are launching a new partnership today aimed at better coordinating their respective efforts to help fight the opioid crisis.

The big picture: Federal regulators had criticized tech platforms over a proliferation of ads for illegal pharmacies. But the companies have done a lot to rein in those ads and to redirect users toward information about treatment when, for example, they search Google or Facebook for opioid-related terms.

Show less

This isn’t really a crisis Silicon Valley can solve — addiction is an offline experience.

But the industry believes it can help by pointing people toward treatment options and other partnerships, like a joint effort with the Drug Enforcement Administration to promote opportunities for patients to turn in unused or expired medications.